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Vegetable oats upma

Vegetable oats upma is not the tastiest of dishes but we eat it on a regular basis keeping in mind its health benefits. Also it is very quick and easy to make, packed with goodness. This is an almost instant food without compromising on health.

Recipe of vegetable oats upma

1 cup oats

Mixed chopped vegetables like carrot, green beans, potato, peas, cauliflower

1 onion- chopped

1 inch piece ginger- grated or chopped

2 green chillies- slit lengthwise

1/2 tsp mustard seeds (kali sarson)

Salt to taste

2 tsp peanuts

2 tsp cashew nuts- broken

1 tsp chana dal (split Bengal gram)

1 tsp urad dal (skinless split black gram)

4-5 curry leaves

1 1/2 cups water

1 1/2 tblsp oil

1. Take a non- stick pan and dry roast the oats till they leave their whitishness and turn brown. Take them out of the pan.

2. Heat oil in the same pan after wiping off with a dry cloth. Add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add chana dal and roast for 1/2 a minute. Add urad dal, peanuts and cashew nuts. Roast till they become light brown.

3. Add onion, green chillies, ginger and curry leaves. Sauté for a minute.

4. Add vegetables, water and salt. Cook covered till vegetables are tender.

5. Add oats and mix well. Lower heat and cook for about 3-4 minutes, covered. Turn off heat and let it stand for 3-4 minutes.

Healthy Bytes- oatmeal is a rich source of dietary fiber, both soluble and insoluble. Oats are proven to be effective in lowering blood cholesterol. Whole oats also reduce high blood pressure. Fiber in oats helps in regular bowel movement. Oatmeal also helps with weight loss.

Oats upma

Rolled oats or simply oats are a healthy and easy breakfast option. They are very low in calories and are heart protective. I have used Quaker oats but Baggry’s oats also give excellent results. They are an almost instant food. Peanuts and cashew nuts are totally optional. If you want to make it more nutritious, you can add various vegetables to it to make vegetable oats upma.

Recipe of oats upma

1 1/2 cup oats

1 onion- chopped

2 cloves garlic- chopped

1/2 inch piece ginger- chopped

1 1/2 cups water

2 tsp peanuts

2 tsp cashew nuts- broken in 4 pieces

Salt to taste

1/4 tsp red chilli powder

1 tbsp oil

1. Dry roast oats in a pan till their whiteness disappears and they look brownish. Take them out of the pan.

2. Heat oil in the same pan and add peanuts and cashews. Roast them for a minute. Add onion and sauté for 1 minute.

3. Add ginger and garlic and sauté for few seconds. Add water, red chilli powder and salt and cover the lid of the pan. Let 1 boil come.

4. Add oats and mix well. Lower heat and simmer covered till all water gets absorbed. Turn off heat and serve hot.

Healthy Bytes- Oats are a rich source of fiber, Iron, Thiamin and antioxidants.

100 grams of dry rolled oats contain-

380 Calories

67 gms Carbohydrates

16 gms Protein

6 gms Fat

0.7 mg Thiamin

Sevai upma

Vermicelli upma is a healthy, low calorie breakfast and you can make it anytime you want to make one pot meal. I use Bambino sevai made of hard wheat and semolina (sooji). You can add any number of vegetables to this upma to make it more nutritious. By using pre- roasted vermicelli, you can cut back on the quantity of oil used plus your labor.

Recipe of sevai upma

½ cup sevai (vermicelli)
1 tsp chana dal (Bengal gram)
1 tsp dhuli urad dal (split black gram)
½ tsp mustard seeds
2 tsp peanuts
2 tsp cashew nuts- broken
1 onion- chopped
2 green chillies- chopped
Vegetables like green peas and carrot (diced)
2 cup water
4 tsp oil
Salt to taste
½ tsp turmeric powder

1. Heat 2 tsp oil in a non- stick pan and roast sevai till golden. Take out sevia from the pan.

2. Heat 2 tsp oil in the same pan and add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add chana dal and after 2-3 seconds, add urad dal, peanuts and broken cashews. Roast till light brown. See to it that they don’t get burned.

3. Add onion and green chillies. Sauté for few seconds and add turmeric powder. Cook for 2 seconds.

4. Add vegetables, salt and water. Cook covered till vegetables are tender.

5. Add sevai or semiya (vermicelli), mix and cook covered on medium heat for 3-4 minutes. Make sure there is some water left in the pan after the vegetables are cooked otherwise add some because vermicelli needs water in which to be cooked.

6. Turn off the heat and let it stand covered for few more minutes. Let all water evaporate and get absorbed. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

Healthy Bytes- 100 grams of vermicelli (sevai, sevia, semiya) contains 361 k calories, 10.5gram Protein, 77.5grams Total Carbohydrates, 2gram fiber, 1gram Total Fat, 2mg Calcium and 2mg Iron.

Bread upma

I have taken whole wheat bread for this recipe to make it healthier. Bread upma is a great way to use up leftover loaf of bread. Bread upma is very quick to make and with in no time, you can serve the breakfast.

Serves 2

5 slices of bread
1 boiled, peeled and cubed potato
1 tablespoon peanuts
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1 onion- chopped
1 tomato- chopped
2 green chilies- chopped
Salt to taste
1 tablespoon oil
1 tsp lemon juice
Chopped coriander leaves

1. Break bread into smaller pieces or alternatively you can make bread crumbs by crushing the bread in a blender. Try it both ways to know which one you prefer. I prefer bread pieces.

2. Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds and cumin seeds. When they crackle, add peanuts and roast.

3. Add onion and green chilies and stir-fry till onion become translucent. Add tomato, turmeric powder and salt. Cook till tomato turns soft.

4. Add potato. Stir-fry for 2 minutes.

5. Add bread and mix well for 3-4 minutes. Add chopped coriander to the upma.

6. Add lemon juice and serve bread upma hot.

Rava upma

 Rava upma is a favorite South Indian breakfast. They relish it with a good cup of coffee in the morning. When you add various vegetables and dals (lentils) to the upma as given in the recipe below, it gets packed with wholesome goodness. Rava upma or sooji upma is a nutritious and low fat breakfast and you can also have it as a snack. I usually roast 1 packet of sooji and store it in an airtight container in my refrigerator.

Recipe of rava upma

 1 cup sooji (rava/ semolina)
 3 cups water
 1 medium onion- chopped
 2 green chillies- slit lengthwise
 1/4 cup shelled green peas
 1 small potato- peeled and cubed
 2-3 florets cauliflower, 3-4 french beans, 1/2 carrot- chopped
 1 tablespoon cashew nuts- broken
 1 tablespoon peanuts
  1 teaspoon chana dal (bengal gram)
 1 teaspoon dhuli urad dal (split black gram)
 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
 4-5 curry leaves
 2 tsp + 2 tsp oil
 salt to taste

1. Heat 2 tsp oil in a pan and add rava. Roast till nice aroma comes out and you can see some golden grains. Turn off the heat and take rava immediately out of the pan otherwise it will keep on roasting.

2. In the same pan, heat 2 tsp oil and add mustard seeds. When they crackle, add chana dal. After few seconds, add urad dal, peanuts and cashew pieces. Roast till light brown.

3. Add curry leaves,onion and green chillies. Saute for a few seconds. Add potato, peas and chopped vegetables. Add water and salt. Cook covered on medium heat till vegetables are tender.

4. Add sooji little by little stirring by the other hand otherwise you will end up getting thick lumps.

5. Cook covered for 2-3 minutes on low heat.

6. Turn off the heat and let it stand for 3-4 minutes.

vegetable sooji upma

Healthy Bytes- 100 grams of rava (sooji/ semolina) contains 352k calories, 1mg Fat, 78mg Carbohydrates, 9gram Protein, 1% Vitamin A, 1% Calcium and 6% Iron.